Stamp-affixer.



UN1TED STATES PATENT @ninmm AUGUST O. KUTZ, OF 'CLEVELAND, OH10.

STAM P-AFFIXER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent o. 688,530, dated December10, 1901. "Applica.tion filer1 November 16, 1900. Serial No. 36,769. (N0model.)

T0 all wh0m it mdy ooncern:

Be it known thal: I, AUGUST C. KUTZ, a einizen of Lhe United Staates,residing at- Cleveland, in the eounty of Ouyahoga and State 0f Ohio,have invented nw and useful Improvements in Sta1np-Affixers, 0f whichthe following is a speeifieation.

This invention relates 130 new 'r'1d'useful improvemients instamp-affixers; and its pri- 1nary object is to provicle a devicewhereby stamps may be automatieally fed to a suitable moistener and thenaffixd t0 an envelop 01 ouher article placed in position upon thedevice.

A further object is to employ an affixer having a moistening devicewhich may be readily rernoved and replaced.

An0ther objeet is to provide novel mechan ism for feeding the stamps 130the moisten'er.

With these and other objects in view the invention consists in providinga base, upon which are mounted standards. Rollers are journaled betweentwo of the standards, one above the other, and are adapted to receivemotion through suitably arranged gears from a shafta mounted above thebase. -A lever is loosely fitted upon this shaft: and is provided wit;hpawl-and-ratchet mechanism, whereby the shafb will be revolved when the.lever is raised, but will remain stationary when said lever is moveddownward. A spring is pro- Vided for holding the lever normally inraised position and a suitable pad is connected to said lever and issadapted '00 be swung downward upon a platen which is mounted inalinement with the rollers before referred to. A vertically-movable boxis arra1iged between the standards of the rollers auf] is adapted tocontain a suitable absorbent, such as a sponge. This absorbent materialprojeets t-hr0ugh the bottom 0f the box into the path of the materialfedbetween the rollers.

The invention also consists in the novel coustruction und conibinationof par ts hereinafher more fully deseribed and clajmed, and illustratedin Lhe accompanying drawings, showing the preferred. form of myinvention, and in whieh Figure 1 is a side elevation of the device. Fig.2 is an end view thereof. Fig. 3 is a section on lin0 0c x, Fig. 2. Fig.4 is a, top plan View showing the lever in lowered position.

the rollers is adapted t0 travel.

F-ig. 5 is a section 0n line y y, Fig. 2. Fig. 6 is'a detail View 0f theplaten 0f the molstener, and Fig. 7 is a similat view of the moistener.

Referi*ing 10 the figures by nmnerals of reference, 1 i s a base, uponwhich axe forrned orsecured suit-able sbandards 2, havingvertieallyexhendlng ribs 3 arranged upon the innev faces adjacenbto'their rear edges. A roller 4, pfeferably formed ot' rub ber'isjournaled bet-ween t.he standards 2 and contacts with a, seeond roller5, formed of similar material, and the shaft 6 of which ext-ends throughthe inner stand aml 2 and is provided Wilh a, gear 7. This gear engagesa larger gear 8, which is loosely mounted up0n a shaf 9, journaledwithin standards 10, extending npward from the base. A ratehet-wheel 11is secured 130 bhis ear g8 and is adapted to be engaged bya p awl 12,pivoted t0 a lever 13, which is also loosely mounted upon the shafi; 9before referred to.

A spring 14 eneircles the shaft; 9 and is secured ab opposite ends 130one 0f the standards 10 and the lever 13, respeeL-ively, and is adaptedto hold the lever normally in raised .pgsibion. A eurved arm 15 extendslaterally from tl1e lever 13 und is provided ab its free.

end With a pad 16, preferably formed 0f rubber and whieh is adapted whenswung downward 130 contact with a, platten 17, formed ab the upper endof a stem 18. This stem projects int0 an apertnre 19, formed within thebase, and a spring 20 encircles the same and bears ab oppositze en(lsupon the planten and base, respect'ively, and serves to hold saidpla-ten normally elevated. A platen 21' is supported by means of a strip22 ab a point b'et1ween the standards 2 and in horizontalalinement withthe pass between he rollers, and the ends 23 of this planten are bentupward and inward, forming a passage thereunder, through whieh thematerinl fed between The ends 23 are slottecl longitudinally, as ab 21,and a1- ranged thereabove is a box 25, having flanges 26 ab h6 edges ofalle ends thereof, whieh embraee the ribs 3 before referred so. Thebottom 0f this b0x is slotted longitudinally in alinement With the slot21 before mentioned, and suitable absorbent material 27 is plaeed Withinthe box and is adapted 130 projeet through tzhe slot in the bottomthereof. A sui'able guide-plate 28 may, ifdesired, be

seeured t0 the base at a point in fron 0f ihe rollers 4 and 5, so Ll1at;Ehe stamps mny be properly fed t-hereto.

In Operation n strip 0f stzunps is plnce l upon the guide-plate 28 andthe end Ll1ereof forced between the rollers 4 and 5. '1he lever 13 isthen swung downward, causing its pawl 12 so slip over alle teeth of theratehet-wheel 11. Said. lever is tl1en released and will ben promptlyswing upward, propelled by Ll1e spring 14. This movernent Wlll eause thepawl 12 to engage the teeth of the ratchetwheel 11 and the gear 8 willbe revolved, thereby imparting motion to the lower roller 4, which inturn will revolve the roller 5. This movement; will besufiicienb '00force ehe strip which l1as been fed Wllll its gun1med face npwardthrougl1 tl1e pnssage formed above the platen 21, and during suchmovement; Ll1e face 0f tl1e strip will be xnoistened by the absorbenb27, projecting from the bottom 0f the box 25. One stamp will be broughbt0 a position above the platen 17, and an envelop 0r any other arhiclewhich it is desired t0 stamp is placed thereover wih bl1e addressed facedownward. The lever 13 is Ll1en swung down until Ll1e pnd 16 eontactsWith tl1e letter. 'lhis will cau'se the plat;en t0 move downwnrd,thereby compressing its spring 20 anrl tearing tl1e stamp adhering: toU10 envelop from the rest 0f the strip. The envelop is then removed, andwl1en the lever is released nhe above-described operation 01: Lherollers is repeated.

In will be seen that Ll1e b0x 25 bears upon Ehe ends 23 of the platen 21by force of gravity. As the absorbent 27 is loosely fitted winhin thebox, ih can be readily removed for cleaning, &c. In will also bennderstood thao tl1is absorbent can be easily moistened by placing asuitable amount of werter throngh alle open top 0f 'uhe box.

In the foregoing description I have shown Lhe preferred form of myinvenbion; but;I do not limit myself thereto, as I am aware tl1atmodifieations may be made Lhe1ein without departing from the spirit orsacrificing any 0f the advantages thereof, and I therefore reserve theright so make such changes as fairly fall within the scope 0f myinvention.

1Iaving tl1us fully described my invention, wlmt I claixn zus new, anddesire t0 secnre by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination \Vllll parallel standards; of contaeting rollersm0nnted between tl1e standards, a platen between the standards inhorizontal alinement with t-he pass between tl1e rollers; a sprin'gsupported platen in front of alle standards; a lever carryin g a pawland apressure-pad; gear-wheels f0r revolving the rollers a ratchet-wheelcoucentric with one of said gear-wheels and adapted to be actnated bysaid pawl; a. spring for 6levnting tl1e lever; and a box c0n tainingabsorbent material, said box resting upon the pla.ten between Lhestandards and guided by said Standards.

2. The combination with a base, of standards thereon, rollers journaledbetween the standards and contacoing with each other, a gear t0 one ofthe rollers, a shafb, a gear loosely monnted ohereon an(l meshing wilhtl1e gear of the roller, a 'ratchet-wheel counectecl t0 Lhe gear of theshaft, a lever loosely mounted. upon sai(l shafla, a pawl theretoadapted 110 engage the ratcheb-wheel when tl1e lever is ra.ised a springfor holding tl1e lever normally raised, a platen in alinement with thepass between the rollers, a box slidably mouned between the standardsund above said platen, mea.n's forlimiting tl1e downward movement ofsnid box, an absorbent within tl1e box adnpted to projeeb fr0xn nhebobtom thereof, a. second platen in alinement with said pass, a stemthereto slidably mounted within the base, a spring eneircling the stemanti adapted t0 suppor the platzen and a pad connected t0 tl1e lever andadapted to be swung into contact wiLh said platen and depress the same.

In testaimony whereof I affix my signnture in presence of two witnesses.

AUGUST C. KUTZ.

\Vitnessesz C. A. BEJOEK, F. 11. BIERMANN.

